“Porque si bien hay una voluntad implícita de no tocar el suelo -incluso los cuerpos que invaden el atrio y los pasadizos que lo atraviesan están apoyados sobre sucesiones de arcos y pilares-, la iglesia y las dos piezas simétricas a ambos lados, la sacristía y la capilla, se hundirán en la tierra. Because while there was an implicit determination not to touch the ground – even the structures that invade the atrium and the walkways that cross it are supported on successions of arches and pillars – the church and the two symmetrical buildings on side, the sacristy and the chapel, are rooted in the earth.
In the church, however, there is no exterior. Time stops. The church is for prayer, for meditation, for celebrating the sacrament of Mass. The church is all about inwardness. And the light bathes the naked walls to accompany these men, facing each other without seeing, with no concept of what the weather is like outside or the relative position of the sun. In the rest of the building, nature will always provide the backdrop for the master’s precise geometry. And this relationship with the landscape is most lyrical in the roof, framing the ever-changing vault of the sky by this first artificial horizon formed by the solid parapet that protects us.
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If we were not already aware of subsequent projects such as the Youth Centre in Firminy, where the architect sought greater drama, imposing himself on the terrain, we would be surprised by the location chosen to position the new monastery. This is particularly true when we take into account the location of the existing one and the fact that the Dominicans owned a huge tract of land around it which could have been used. The point was that it was not about ‘depositing’ the building, grounding it like Ville Savoie. La Tourette can be explained from top to bottom and from bottom to top. Because while there was an implicit determination not to touch the ground – even the structures that invade the atrium and the walkways that cross it are supported on successions of arches and pillars – the church and the two symmetrical buildings on side, the sacristy and the chapel, are rooted in the earth.
Si no conociésemos de la posterior existencia de proyectos como el Centro de Jóvenes de Firminy, en los que el arquitecto busca un mayor dramatismo, imponiéndose al territorio, nos extrañaría la situación elegida para ubicar el nuevo convento. Sobre todo, teniendo en cuenta la situación del ya existente y el hecho de que los dominicos poseían una enorme extensión de terreno a su alrededor para poder disponer. Porque ya no se tratará de ‘depositar’ el edificio, de hacerlo aterrizar, como en el caso de Villa Savoie. La Tourette puede explicarse de arriba a abajo y de abajo a arriba. Porque si bien hay una voluntad implícita de no tocar el suelo -incluso los cuerpos que invaden el atrio y los pasadizos que lo atraviesan están apoyados sobre sucesiones de arcos y pilares-, la iglesia y las dos piezas simétricas a ambos lados, la sacristía y la capilla, se hundirán en la tierra.